Will the Real Manny Parra Please Stand Up?

The Brewers announced today that they avoided arbitration with Manny Parra by settling on a one year contract. Many of you are probably thinking, "oh yeah I forgot about Parra." I had thought the same thing as he was no where near the brewers at all this past season. This was mainly due to and elbow and back injury that derailed him the whole season. But he will be back in good health hopefully for the 2012 season. Since Parra debuted with the Brewers in 2007, he hasn't had much success and many fans, including me at sometimes, have wanted the Brewers to give him the hook or trade him. Truth be told though, Parra was a stud in the minors and I would really like to see a bounce back season from him. He has a great arsenal of pitches but he never can seem to harness those pitches which is why he has dealt with high ERA's. He seems to pitche a great 5 1/3 innings then either loses total command or loses total confidence after giving up a few runs or hits. He really needs to keep his confidence out there on the mound. I would like to see the top prospect form that he once had make a comeback. In 2 seasons at A ball he compiled a 2.69 era in 140 innings. Then at 4 AA seasons he compiled a 3.39 era in 209 innings. Finally in 3 seasons at AAA he compiled a 2.95 era in 60 innings. His era's in his minor seasons are pretty solid. If he makes a return to the brewers this upcoming season he will probably be used out of the bullpen where he's had his most success. I really hope he ends up returning to form and putting together a nice season.

Free Agent Signings and Trades

As the off season approached, Doug Melvin was looking for ways to improve a team that took first place in the NL Central but was also losing a few key members of the bullpen and first-basemen Prince Fielder. It was pretty clear that Prince wasn't going to be back in Milwaukee. We needed to fix the Yuni B problem at short, find a cheap power bat, upgrade the Casey McGehee problem at third, and slightly rebuild the bullpen. When Melvin signed Alex Gonzales at short, I was pretty happy. Gonzales is a guy who will give about the same offensive production but his defense is significantly better. When i used to watch Yuni play short, I always thought he was pretty decent but then I really started to realize he has absolutely no range at all and can't make most plays that other shortstops can make easily. So overall I'm pretty happy with that signing. One of the other big problems was what to do at third base. It was too risky to bet on McGehee having a bounce back year so Melvin traded him to the Pirates for Jose Veras, a pretty decent lefty in the bullpen. I would have wished we could've held onto McGehee to possibly play first if the whole Mat Gamel thing doesn't pan out but we needed the help I the bullpen so I think it was a solid move. The Brewers also offered arbitration to Fransisco Rodriguez assuming he would decline but he ended up accepting the arbitration. Unless we try to trade him because of the cost, he will continue as the setup man for the Ax Man. The major move in this offseason was the signing of Aramis Ramirez. Now even though Ramirez was a Cub, he is still a great ballplayer and when i heard he inquired about wanting to come to Milwaukee I was all for it. The great thing about this was that Ramirez signed for 3 years and 36 million. not too bad for a guy who has hit at least 25 bombs in at least 8 seasons. He is also a silver slugger and All Star. He also hit over .300 last year. Other than 2010 when he had a down year because of injuries, he has put up great numbers. He will be our new cleanup hitter most likely and I'm really looking forward to him putting up those great numbers for the crew! The rotation is pretty much set as well as the outfield so the team is coming together really nice. I'm still not sure if Melvin will try a different option at first base but I guess we will have to wait and see!

The Real T Plush

For those of you who don't know, Nyjer Morgan was one of the most significant trades that Doug Melvin and Co. acquired. Not only did T Plush help motivate the team throughout the season but he also provided that extra spark that we needed. He was clutch all the way up to the playoffs and he struggled a little in the playoffs but still he was a major impact in our playoff run. Most of the analysts criticized  him for his behavior but personally I think he was just needed a team that he could find a niche with. I really think he found it with the Brewers. Not only did the team like him, but the fans loved every aspect of his type of game. His after game interviews were especially hilarious. What more could a Brewers fan ask for? A guy who loves his fans and plays for the love of his team and the sport is the best kind of baseball player a team could ask for. I follow him on twitter and he really shows that his fans are the best people on the planet. I will always continue to show my support for T Plush! Follow him on twitter at @TheRealTPlush for an exclusive look at the man who respects his Brewers fans best! Represent the T and lets hope for an awesome 2012 season!

The Ryan Braun Dilemma

As most of you have already heard, Ryan Braun had tested positive for a banned substance during the playoffs. The assholes at Outside The Lines were incorrect as it was not a PED, but rather a banned substance. When you see Ryan Braun's swing, you know he's a naturally good hitter. Ryan Braun always said that if he was on steroids, he would hit 60-70 homeruns which is true. This last season he hit 33 which is considered a down year for home runs in a player of his caliber. Its not like his numbers other than his batting average were that different so I'm almost positive that he was not taking steroids. But a banned substance is a whole different story and he is appealing the process. A banned substance could be anything. The latest rumor though is that it was for a personal issue and some are saying it was herpes medication that caused the spike in his testosterone levels. But if it was a personal medication, he still should have disclosed it with the team or Major League Baseball so he wouldn't have run into this situation. To make matters worse, Ryan had just one the NL MVP award which is huge! Because this story leaked out before his appeal had finished and it may have tarnished his name as one of the best players not named Albert Pujols. We will have to see what the verdict is and I hope he wont be missing the 50 games of the 2012 season because most of us Brewers fans will be extremely disappointed. I am a big fan of Ryan Braun and I think he's the best Brewer to come along since Robin Yount. I can only hope that things turn out good for him.

Reflecting on the 2011 Season

Many Brewers fans including myself saw this past season as one of the best seasons in Brewers history. In the offseason Doug Melvin and Co. had traded away most of the farm system (more on that later) to land Zack Greinke and Shaun Marcum. Marcum was aquired during the Winter Meetings for our top prospect Brett Lawrie who is now entering the big leagues and I'm not gonna lie looks to be a complete stud even though apparently hes kind of a tool. Then a few weeks later Melvin traded four of our other top prospects to land former Cy Young award winner, Zack Greinke. After these two huge trades the Brewers were looking to be serious contenders. Even thought Greinke pulled his little basketball bullshit, he ended up coming back and putting up some pretty decent numbers. I honestly wish he would have pitched better considering hes capable of being a dominant ace but fortunately he did go undefeated at home which helped out a lot. Marcum on the other hand pitched phenomenally all the way up until the playoffs. The five man rotation panned out perfectly. Randy Wold even had a great season and was very clutch in the offseason. Yovani Gallardo struggled early in the season but found his groove towards the end of the season and man he was lights out through the postseason! The real treat for Brewers fans this past year was the emergence of Nyjer Morgan aka Tony Plush! Morgan was such a motivated player through the whole year and has become a fan favorite, with countless clutch performances. We ended up with a 90 win season and first place in the NL Central. The Brewers marched their way through the playoffs where they ended up losing to the Cardinals in the NLCS. I'm just gonna note that once again we lost in the playoffs to the World Series Champions, we all remember 2008 with the Phillies. I think the thing that really hurt was losing to our division rivals, even though our offense and pitching disappeared in that series which was the real reason with our defeat. So now Prince Fielder is gone in free agency which will hurt but hopefully 2012 will be an even better season!